We're Still Saying Goodbye

Tomorrow is Father's Day and it will be an emotional one for me. It will be the first one in my life without my dad. As a big family, we are going to the family cemetary to bury Dad's ashes. I'm expecting more tears...but I look forward to being with everyone that knew and loved my dad again. I still am grieving and sometimes it doesn't feel like there is time to stop and cry or even reminisce. We're going to have a big ole' barbecue at my grandparents house afterward.

I wrote and read this poem to my dad at his service:

My Grandma Barb was in labor on November 26^th 1949,

Baby Joe did not arrive with his head first, but his behind.

My dad’s first photos showed a family full of pride,

That brown eyed baby was in for quite a ride.

He grew up fast, soon joined by Susie, Danny, and Kathy,

Nostalgic childhood memories on that street called Greenvalley.

Their family met longtime friends the Swifts

Eleven kids in total, Barb and Donna shared some shifts

My dad often escaped, over the river and over the hill,

His bike would take him to his Grandparents house in Butteville

During elementary school in Newberg he was quite the player,

Already friends with girls like Rosemary Watt and Julie Miller.

Then there were Dad’s infamous Newberg High days

Watt, Gettsinger, Beecroft and Gaibler added to his wild ways.

In 1971, a 22 year old Joe wed my mom on New Years Eve,

I heard many stories about their reception at the Newberg Armory!

Dad was 16 when he started his career at Allen Machinery

Alongside grandpa Foye, and Great Grandpa Chet – a family scenery!

A few years later mom and dad welcomed their first baby

Foye and Barb’s first granddaughter was named Lesley.

They weren’t done there- adding another girl, and a boy

The second child was me, and the third was Jonathan Foye

Like many young fathers, my dad worked very hard,

Both at his job, and on many occasion out in our yard.

My childhood was just like any child’s should be,

Barbecues, bike rides, and many trips to the sea.

Dad sure liked anything that was different than the normal grind,

He enjoyed holidays, big storms, and movies of every kind.

Family was what dad taught us to hold above the rest,

But he was always preparing us to leave our comfy nest.

There was never any question about our education

My parents sacrificed to send us to our choice college destination.

Even better than the jobs we gained , he loved the people we met

With George, Mike and Meghann our family was now set.

I do believe that in his life, he was most proud of our accomplishments

And yet, we're most thankful that he continually taught us common sense.

“Drive careful, go on vacation, take care of your mother,

Do something just for laughs, visit your grandmother.

Even during the last years when he was very sick,

Life kept on going and he got to meet his eight grandkids.

There is Max, and Daphne, Cole and Maisie Jo

Emmy and Miles, Ruby and Lincoln, oh he loved them so.

They will remember the lollipops he carried in the jacket he wore,

But you can be sure that we will be teaching them much more.

We’ll play your music, and tell them all their history

We’ll take care of each other, and hold on to your memory.

Today in front of everyone I’ll tell you my life’s biggest regret

I never told you how proud of you I was, and that is why today my eyes will be the most wet.

Yes, you were the Dad that God purposefully gave me,

and I will do my very best to be the daughter you BOTH want me to be.

No matter the circumstances or emotions or story, tomorrow remember to honor your dad - thank him for being your dad. If there's something I've learned through my loss - is life is short.